Winsted welcomes new mural representing the town
By AUSTEN NEATON - Staff Writer
Winsted librarian Lisa Ebert and local resident Sherry Sundbland recently teamed up to create a “ love letter ” to the City of Winsted .
Their epistle took the form of a mural that can be seen on the front wall of the library .
The women commissioned Jasmin Vick , a local graphic designer , to create the artwork for the project .
Sundbland and Ebert came up with the idea for the mural late last year when they were discussing ideas for a display in front of the library .
They wanted something meaningful to be put there , and Sundbland knew her church – the River of Life Christian Church next to the library – could support the project financially .
After first considering a bench similar to others around the town , the two women started to think of other ideas .
When Ebert recalled a mural she had seen in Wayzata , the pair realized they could create their own mural for Winsted .
“ We wondered at first if we could even do it and realized ‘ of course we can ’ because we are strong , capable women ,” Ebert said . “ We just can ’ t draw .”
Neither Sundbland nor Ebert are originally from Winsted , so they decided to use the mural to display the things they feel make the town great .
“ Neither one of us grew up here so the way I look at it is that this is like our love letter to the town ,” Ebert said . “ It ’ s what we , as transplants , love about Winsted .”
“ We just thought about what Winsted is known for , and we came up with Winstock , the lake , farming , baseball , and church ,” Sundbland added .
Though they weren ’ t artists , the women were able to use stick figure drawings to come up with a rough design of what they wanted .
When spring arrived , Ebert and Sundbland began searching for an artist to create the mural ’ s image , and they decided to hire Vick , a graphic designer who also attends River of Life Christian Church . “ She has always been an awesome artist ,” Sundbland said . Vick said she was thrilled to be chosen for the job . “ Most of my artwork has been as a hobby , so to be able to do something that large for the town was awesome ,” she said . “ I was really glad that they offered it to me , I felt very flattered .”
Sundbland said she and Ebert were happy to have a local artist . “ Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic , we have both been very adamant about supporting local businesses , local endeavors , and local residents ,” she said .
Vick got to work quickly , and within weeks , the mural was finished . She said she was very happy with the final product , which was attached to the wall a couple of weeks ago . Sundbland and Ebert were happy , too . “ I was very proud . For Sherry and I , we do a lot of things quietly around town because we are not in it for the glory ,” Ebert said . “ While a bench would have worked fine , to have something on this scale that I can drive by and know that I had a part in it is really neat .”
Vick plans to move away from Winsted in about a month , and she said the mural is her going away present to the city .
PHOTO BY AUSTEN NEATON Winsted resident Jasmin Vick stands next to the mural that she created for the wall that sits between the Winsted Library and River of Life Christian Church . The image took Vick between 20 to 30 hours to complete .
– 34 – Winsted Community Guide | 2024 Winstedheraldjournal . com